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121 Per Cent Growth in Regional Low Cost Flights says OAG - Asia Pacific Media 18  December  2002

Worldwide flights increase 5% year on year

Figures published today (18 December 2002) by OAG, the world's leading independent source of flight information, indicate that the number of low cost flights within the Pacific/Australasia region has increased by 121%, the equivalent of an additional 614 flights a week, during the last 12 months. The figures are part of the first OAG quarterly report on global airline schedules.*

Low-cost flights internationally
According to the report, the number of low cost flights within the Asia region has increased by 26% or 151 flights. This enormous growth is mirrored around the globe with low cost flights within Europe increasing by 119% and low cost flights between North and South America increasing by 98%..

Overall market and regional statistics
The total number of scheduled flights worldwide has increased by 5% or 24,544 flights a week, since December 2001, with international flights to and from the Asia Pacific region up 7% and flights within the regional market up 8%. Globally, China has seen the largest growth, with flights to and from China increasing by 18%, a further 799 flights a week.

Key routes
On the key transpacific route, the number of flights has increased by 4%. Traffic between Hong Kong and the USA and Canada has increased by 13%, while the number of transpacific flights to and from Tokyo has risen by 6%. Flights between Western Europe and Asia Pacific have increased by 7%, with the number of flights between Tokyo and Western Europe increasing by 19%.

Hubs
Many of the world's airports are showing increases in the number of flights. Tokyo Narita airport shows significant growth, with an additional 829 flights a week, an increase of 40%. The number of flights to and from Hong Kong has increased by 8%, while flights to and from London Heathrow have increased by 2%. In the US, some of the airports severely effected by September 11th are showing signs of recovery, for example New York JFK shows an increase of 21% and Washington Ronald Reagan an increase of 92%, since December 2001.

Lynne Fraser, marketing director of OAG data, commented: "The expansion of the low-cost sector around the globe is unprecedented.  The growth is coming from the introduction of new routes as well as additional flights on established routes.

More generally, it is encouraging to see that the number of flights worldwide and on key routes such as the transatlantic route, is continuing to increase after such a challenging year."                                

OAG collects the schedules of more than 900 airlines in a variety of formats and verifies, quality checks and processes them into a consistent format for distribution throughout the airline and travel industries.   Its database also includes cargo information.

The figures below show low-cost flights by region:

	10-16 Dec 01 vs. 9-15 Dec 02 Frequency Variance %
Low cost within Asia	26%
Lost within Pacific/Australasia	121%
Low cost within Europe	119%
Low within US Low cost within Canada Lost within Latin America Low cost between North & South America	18% 54% 25% 98%
Low cost to/from UK Low cost within UK	73% 129%

The figures below show international and domestic flights by region:

	10-16 Dec 01 vs. 9-15 Dec 02 Frequency Variance %
Worldwide	5%
To/from Asia Pacific Within Asia Pacific	7% 8%
To/from China Within China	18% 14%
To/from US/Canada US Domestics	10% 6%
To/from Europe Within Europe	9% 5%
To/from UK UK Domestic	9% 8%
To/from Central & South America Within Central & South America	11% 1%
To/from Africa Within Africa	7% -3%
To/From Middle East Within Middle East	4% 2%

The figures below show flights on a selection of the world's major routes:

	10-16 Dec 01 vs. 9-15 Dec 02 Frequency Variance %
Transpacific
USA/Canada to/from Asia Pacific	4%
Tokyo to/from USA & Canada	6%
Hong Kong to/from USA & Canada	13%
Western Europe/Asia Pacific
Western Europe to/from Asia Pacific	7%
London (Heathrow & Gatwick) to/from Asia Pacific	6%
Tokyo to/from Western Europe	19%
Hong Kong to/from Western Europe	5%
Singapore to/from Western Europe	3%
Transatlantic
USA & Canada to/from Western Europe	10%
London Heathrow to/from USA & Canada	16%
London Gatwick to/from USA & Canada	-10%
Paris Charles de Gaulle to/from USA & Canada	18%

The figures below show flights at a selection of the world's major airports:

	10-16 Dec 01 vs. 9-15 Dec 02 Frequency Variance %
To/from Tokyo, Narita	40%
To/from Singapore Changi	1%
To/from Hong Kong	8%
To/from New York, JFK	21%
To/from Washington, Ronald Reagan	92%
To/from Chicago, O'Hare	10%
To/from London Heathrow	2%
To/from London Gatwick	9%
To/from Paris Charles de Gaulle	9%

For further information or requests for interviews, please contact:

Clair Waldron/Fiona Chow at Brown Lloyd James
T:+44 (0) 20 7591  9610        M: +44 (0) 7866 447732 or M: +44 (0) 7973 753 583
E: clairw@blj.co.uk      fionac@blj.co.uk

Notes to editors

*The OAG Quarterly Report on Global Airline Schedules

This is the first OAG quarterly report on global airline schedules, developed to provide a comprehensive snapshot of the current state of the air travel industry.  The data used in the report is taken from the OAG schedules database, the scale and quality of which is unmatched. Recognised for its accuracy, the OAG database is constantly updated and holds data on more than 900 airlines and over 1.4 million flight sectors.

The report identifies and compares the number of scheduled flights by region, on key routes and to and from major airports, for a particular week from year to year.  Future reports are planned for publication in March, June, September and December 2003. 

To obtain the full figures for the December 2002 report click here or contact Fiona Chow at Brown Lloyd James.